PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 682 PRINTER'S NO. 1359
No. 618 Session of 2005
INTRODUCED BY WAUGH, WENGER, SCARNATI, M. WHITE, WONDERLING,
RAFFERTY, STOUT, CORMAN, LEMMOND, D. WHITE, KITCHEN, PUNT,
GORDNER, THOMPSON, TOMLINSON, ROBBINS, ARMSTRONG AND PICCOLA,
APRIL 12, 2005
SENATOR GREENLEAF, JUDICIARY, AS AMENDED, NOVEMBER 15, 2005
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure) of the <--
2 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, limiting civil liability
3 for injury or death in connection with equine activities.
4 The General Assembly finds and declares that equine
5 activities are engaged in by a substantial number of the
6 citizens of this Commonwealth and also attract to this
7 Commonwealth a large number of nonresidents:
8 The General Assembly further finds that these activities
9 significantly contribute to the economy of this Commonwealth.
10 The General Assembly further finds that equine community and
11 horse farms play a significant role in agriculture and
12 preservation of open space.
13 The General Assembly further finds that equine activities
14 involve inherent risks that are essentially impractical or
15 impossible to eliminate and that those risks must be borne by
16 those who engage in the activities.
17 The General Assembly therefore determines that as a matter of
1 public policy those participating in equine activities
2 voluntarily assume the risk of the inherent dangers of the sport
3 and civil liability for injuries or death shall be limited.
4 PROVIDING FOR IMMUNITY FOR EQUINE OWNERS, POSSESSORS OR <--
5 HANDLERS.
6 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
7 hereby enacts as follows:
8 Section 1. Chapter 83 of Title 42 of the Pennsylvania <--
9 Consolidated Statutes is amended by adding a subchapter to read:
10 SUBCHAPTER I
11 EQUINE ACTIVITY
12 Sec.
13 8395. Definitions.
14 8396. Assumption of inherent risks.
15 8397. Exceptions.
16 8398. Notices.
17 § 8395. Definitions.
18 The following words and phrases when used in this subchapter
19 shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
20 context clearly indicates otherwise:
21 "Engages in an equine activity." Participation in equine
22 activity. The term includes:
23 (1) Riding, training, loading and unloading for travel
24 or breeding an equine.
25 (2) Providing or assisting in medical, dental or
26 therapeutic treatment of an equine.
27 (3) Placing or removing horseshoes and trimming hooves.
28 (4) Driving or being a passenger upon an equine or a
29 device attached to the equine.
30 (5) Visiting, touring or utilizing an equine facility.
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1 (6) Sponsoring an equine activity.
2 (7) Assisting a participant or show management at an
3 equine activity.
4 The term does not include acting as a spectator unless the
5 spectator is placed in an area in immediate proximity to the
6 equine activity.
7 "Equine." A horse, pony, donkey or mule.
8 "Equine activity." Activity which involves the use of an
9 equine. The term includes:
10 (1) Equine shows, fairs, parades, competitions or
11 performances which involve breeds of equine participating in
12 an activity. This paragraph includes dressage, hunter and
13 jumper shows, Grand Prix jumping, three-day eventing,
14 combined training, rodeos, reining, cutting, team penning,
15 driving, pulling, barrel racing, steeplechasing, English and
16 Western performance riding, endurance and nonendurance trail
17 riding, Western games, gymkhana, hunting, packing,
18 therapeutic riding and driving and recreational riding.
19 (2) Equine or rider and driver training, teaching,
20 instructing or evaluation. This paragraph includes clinics,
21 seminars and demonstrations.
22 (3) Boarding equines, including normal daily care.
23 (4) Breeding equines, whether by live cover or
24 artificial insemination.
25 (5) Riding, driving, inspecting or evaluating an equine
26 belonging to another by a purchaser or agent, whether or not
27 the owner has received anything of value for the use of the
28 equine or is permitting a prospective purchaser or a
29 purchaser's agent to ride, drive, inspect or evaluate the
30 equine.
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1 (6) Recreational rides, drives or other activity
2 involving the use of an equine.
3 (7) Providing or assisting in medical, dental or
4 therapeutic care of an equine.
5 (8) Placing, removing or replacing horseshoes or
6 trimming of horse hooves.
7 (9) Leading, handling or grooming an equine.
8 "Equine activity sponsor." Any individual, group, club or
9 business entity, whether or not operating for profit, that
10 sponsors, organizes, conducts or provides the facilities or
11 equines for an equine activity. The term includes pony and horse
12 clubs, 4-H groups, equine associations, farms, recreational
13 riding, riding facilities and show grounds and arenas where
14 equine activities are held.
15 "Equine professional." A person engaged in any of the
16 following equine activities:
17 (1) Training, teaching, instructing or evaluating a
18 participant or an equine, or renting an equine to a
19 participant for the purpose of riding, driving or being a
20 passenger upon an equine or a device attached to an equine.
21 (2) Renting or leasing equipment or tack to a
22 participant.
23 (3) Providing daily care of horses boarded at a
24 facility.
25 "Inherent risks of equine activities." Dangers or conditions
26 which are an integral part of equine activities. The term
27 includes:
28 (1) The propensity of an equine to behave in a manner
29 which may cause injury, harm or death to a person on or near
30 it.
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1 (2) The unpredictability of an equine's reaction to
2 sounds, sudden movements, unfamiliar objects, individuals or
3 other animals.
4 (3) An equine's reaction to certain natural hazards,
5 such as surface and subsurface ground conditions.
6 (4) A collision with other equines or objects.
7 (5) An equine's response to the participant's manner of
8 handling or controlling it or inability to handle or control
9 it.
10 "Participant." An individual, whether amateur or
11 professional, who engages in an equine activity, regardless of
12 whether a fee is paid to engage in the equine activity. If a
13 participant is a minor, the term includes the parent, guardian
14 or person standing in loco parentis.
15 § 8396. Assumption of inherent risks.
16 A participant in an equine activity is deemed to assume the
17 inherent risk of equine activities, whether created by the
18 equine, weather conditions, ground conditions or other inherent
19 risks of the equine activity. Except as set forth in section
20 8397 (relating to exceptions), the assumption of the risk shall
21 be a complete bar to suit by a participant in an equine activity
22 or a successor in interest and shall serve as a complete defense
23 to any action, claim or suit against an equine activity sponsor,
24 equine professional or other participant.
25 § 8397. Exceptions.
26 Nothing in section 8396 (relating to assumption of inherent
27 risks) shall bar or limit the liability of an equine activity
28 sponsor, equine professional or any other participant if the
29 equine activity sponsor, equine professional or participant:
30 (1) was grossly negligent;
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1 (2) committed an act or omission which constitutes
2 willful or reckless disregard for the safety of the
3 participant and which caused the injury or death; or
4 (3) intentionally injured the participant.
5 § 8398. Notices.
6 An equine activity sponsor and an equine professional shall
7 post the following notice and include the notice in contracts,
8 riding and lesson agreements, registration and entry forms and
9 any other documents required by the equine activity sponsor and
10 equine professional for the participation in an equine activity:
11 Warning: Under Pennsylvania law an equine professional
12 and equine activity sponsor is not liable for an injury
13 to or death of a participant in equine activities
14 resulting from the inherent risks of equine activities.
15 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
16 SECTION 1. SCOPE. <--
17 THIS ACT SHALL APPLY TO AN INDIVIDUAL, GROUP, CLUB OR
18 BUSINESS ENTITY THAT SPONSORS, ORGANIZES, CONDUCTS OR PROVIDES
19 THE FACILITIES FOR AN EQUINE ACTIVITY AS DEFINED IN THIS ACT.
20 SECTION 2. IMMUNITY.
21 (A) ASSUMPTION OF RISK.--AS TO THOSE WITHIN THE SCOPE OF
22 THIS ACT, LIABILITY FOR NEGLIGENCE SHALL ONLY BE BARRED WHERE
23 THE DOCTRINE OF KNOWING VOLUNTARY ASSUMPTION OF RISK IS PROVEN
24 WITH RESPECT TO DAMAGES DUE TO INJURIES OR DEATH TO AN ADULT
25 PARTICIPANT RESULTING FROM EQUINE ACTIVITIES.
26 (B) EQUINE ACTIVITIES.--FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS ACT,
27 IMMUNITY SHALL APPLY WHERE AN EQUINE IS UTILIZED IN THE
28 FOLLOWING MANNER:
29 (1) EQUINE TRAINING, TEACHING, RIDING INSTRUCTION,
30 SHOWS, FAIRS, PARADES, COMPETITIONS OR PERFORMANCES WHICH
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1 INVOLVE BREEDS OF EQUINE PARTICIPATING IN AN ACTIVITY. THIS
2 PARAGRAPH SHALL INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, DRESSAGE,
3 HUNTER AND JUMPER SHOWS, GRAND PRIX JUMPING, THREE-DAY
4 EVENTING, COMBINED TRAINING, RODEOS, REINING, CUTTING, TEAM
5 PENNING AND SORTING, DRIVING, PULLING, BARREL RACING,
6 STEEPLECHASING, ENGLISH AND WESTERN PERFORMANCE RIDING AND
7 ENDURANCE AND NONENDURANCE TRAIL RIDING. THIS PARAGRAPH SHALL
8 ALSO INCLUDE WESTERN GAMES, GYMKHANA, HUNTING, PACKING,
9 THERAPEUTIC RIDING AND DRIVING AND RECREATIONAL RIDING.
10 (2) EQUINE OR RIDER AND DRIVER TRAINING, TEACHING,
11 INSTRUCTION OR EVALUATION. THIS PARAGRAPH INCLUDES CLINICS,
12 SEMINARS AND DEMONSTRATIONS.
13 (3) BOARDING EQUINES, INCLUDING NORMAL DAILY CARE.
14 (4) BREEDING EQUINES, WHETHER BY LIVE COVER OR
15 ARTIFICIAL INSEMINATION.
16 (5) INSPECTING, RIDING OR EVALUATING AN EQUINE BELONGING
17 TO ANOTHER BY A PURCHASER OR AGENT, WHETHER OR NOT THE OWNER
18 OF THE EQUINE HAS RECEIVED ANYTHING OF VALUE FOR THE USE OF
19 THE EQUINE OR IS PERMITTING A PROSPECTIVE PURCHASER OR A
20 PURCHASER'S AGENT TO RIDE, DRIVE, INSPECT OR EVALUATE THE
21 EQUINE.
22 (6) RECREATIONAL RIDES OR DRIVES WHICH INVOLVE RIDING OR
23 OTHER ACTIVITY INVOLVING THE USE OF AN EQUINE.
24 (7) PLACING, REMOVING OR REPLACING OF HORSESHOES OR THE
25 TRIMMING OF AN EQUINE'S HOOVES.
26 (8) LEADING, HANDLING OR GROOMING OF AN EQUINE.
27 SECTION 3. SIGNING.
28 THIS ACT SHALL PROVIDE IMMUNITY ONLY WHERE SIGNING IS
29 CONSPICUOUSLY POSTED ON THE PREMISES ON A SIGN AT LEAST THREE
30 FEET BY TWO FEET, IN TWO OR MORE LOCATIONS, WHICH STATES THE
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1 FOLLOWING:
2 YOU ASSUME THE RISK OF EQUINE ACTIVITIES PURSUANT TO
3 PENNSYLVANIA LAW.
4 SECTION 4. EQUINE PROPENSITY.
5 EVIDENCE OF VICIOUSNESS OF THE EQUINE SHALL NOT BE REQUIRED
6 BEFORE A POSSESSOR OF AN EQUINE SHALL BE SUBJECT TO LIABILITY
7 FOR HARM.
8 SECTION 5. EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS.
9 THIS ACT SHALL NOT AFFECT COMMON LAW OR ANY STATUTE FOR THE
10 PROTECTION OF THE USER OF THE EQUINE. IN NO EVENT SHALL THIS ACT
11 APPLY TO ANY MATTER INVOLVING A MOTOR VEHICLE COVERED BY 75
12 PA.C.S. CH. 17 (RELATING TO FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY) OR A
13 SUCCESSOR ACT OR TO ANY NONEQUINE-RELATED ACTIVITY OR ENTITY.
14 SECTION 6. CONSTRUCTION.
15 THE IMMUNITY PROVIDED FOR BY THIS ACT SHALL BE NARROWLY
16 CONSTRUED.
17 SECTION 7. EFFECTIVE DATE.
18 THIS ACT SHALL TAKE EFFECT IN 60 DAYS.
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